by Helen Raven
Review by: Slantedlight
Review
I adore this story. It's an alternative universe science fiction story, where Ray (not Doyle, but that's okay) is a prince on his (Earth-like) home planet. The royal family are traders, and although Ray's normal profession is the alien equivalent of being in the police, he must on occasion do his royal duty and accompany the family out of system. They visit Earth, of course, and Ray falls for Bodie, who is told that if he does not accompany the aliens back to their home planet, as Ray's husband-to-be, Earth will find itself at war. Bodie does his duty, of course, and finds himself in a strange new world...
Okay, I admit, it sounds like a terrible premise (and I'm not keen on the original version, Hostage to Peace by Wally) but in Raven's hands it is a beautifully written story of angst (of course, this is Helen Raven) and love. Her Bodie and Doyle are slightly slanted from "mine", but I see their essence clearly there, they are still Bodie and Doyle and in particular they face the same kind of battle that our lads do with what is "right" and what they themselves believe in.
This is gorgeous writing, real characters, and as with all Raven's writing, a melancholy, deeply-felt atmosphere that pulls you in until the end and weaves itself right through you for days afterwards.
Slantedlight, 2007